This invention relates to a device for spreading layers of dough of circular shape from previously prepared dough masses of near spherical shape, particularly for spreading dough for pizzas, pancakes, etc.
These food doughs are usually spread by hand by means of a wood-roller from a previously prepared ball of dough of substantial spheric shape.
In view of an ordinary pizza maker being required to spread hundreds of pizzas each day within a short time period, the operation becomes clearly tiring, in spite of its apparent simplicity.
A machine is available commercially which can spread pizza dough by pressing the dough ball between two heated metal disk plates, but with poor results both as regards the time required by the machine to carry out the operation and the quality of the resulting pizza.
Another prior machine spreads the dough for pizza by passing the dough ball between a first pair of rollers located at a high level, thereafter with the intermediary of a chute, of a hook-like rocker arm device, and small wheel, the dough should be rotated by the hook through 90.degree. to undergo another rolling pass between a second pair of rollers located at a lower level and being angled to the first roller pair, the two roller pairs being fastened to the chute; that is to say, there exists a plane defined by the centerlines of the upper roller pair and lower roller pair which is the theoretical plane along which the dough should slide.
Such a machine provides unsatisfactory results as regards circularity of the final dough pattern because the hook is unable to rotate the dough through 90.degree., and serious problems are encountered if the weight of the original ball is changed.
There are, moreover, machines whereby the operator, after passing the dough ball between a roller pair is to pick up the rolled dough once again and present it, turned through 90.degree., to either that same roller pair or another roller pair.
The disadvantages of such machines are apparent.